Although many of the companies listed on the Irish Stock Exchange would not, on the face of it, have much direct exposure to the trade tensions and tariffs that have been the focus of investors over the last three months, that didn’t mean the market was immune to the rollercoaster ride that markets have endured over the last three months. While the world may have been caught in a whirlwind of sentiment swings, some of the major Irish companies stuck to the knitting and reported positive earnings updates.

CRH

The reaffirmation of CRH’s full-year guidance, amidst macro uncertainty, was well received and reflects the group’s differentiated strategy, pricing progress and contributions from acquisitions. While Q1 is the least significant quarter in the year, what is encouraging is the underlying momentum as well as positive backlogs and bidding momentum. Q1 adjusted operating profit was up 11% yoy, with revenue of US$6.76bn, which was 3% higher than the prior year. A quarterly dividend of US$0.37 has been declared (+6% yoy) and an additional US$300m buyback has been authorised to run through August 5th.

The guidance for the year has been reaffirmed with the statement citing a positive outlook for the business - the company continues to expect positive underlying demand across key end user markets, underpinned by significant public investment in critical infrastructure and re-industrialisation in non-residential segments. Due to the localised nature of CRH’s operations, the group does not expect a material direct impact from recent changes in global trade policies.

Kerry Group

Kerry Group Q1 volumes at 3.1% were in line with expectations, as good growth was reported in emerging markets and the foodservice channel. The group reiterated its earnings guidance for this year and announced a further buyback of up to €300m.

For the Taste & Nutrition (T&N) division, Q1 volumes grew by 3.1% yoy with pricing of 0.2%. The continuing business operating profit margin increased by 0.9%, primarily driven by cost efficiencies, contribution from acquisitions, operating leverage and portfolio mix. Emerging markets volumes grew by 6.4% yoy, driven by strong growth in Southeast Asia. Foodservice volume growth at 4.7% confirms strong channel execution and client relevancy.

Volume growth in the Americas was 3.5% with ‘good growth’ in the retail channel and foodservice performing ‘well’. Within the retail channel, growth was supported by renovation activity across customer and retailer brands. LATAM growth was led by Brazil and Central America. The Asia/Middle East/ Africa region delivered 5.1% volume growth in the quarter, underpinned by ‘very strong’ growth in the foodservice channel. Within the region, a ‘strong’ performance in Southeast Asia and the Middle East was reported. China volumes remain challenging. Foodservice delivered ‘strong’ volume growth with regional coffee chains and quick service restaurants. The Europe region reported volume growth of 0.1% with a ‘good’ performance in foodservice and softer dynamics in the retail channel. The end user markets of Beverage and Bakery achieved ‘good’ growth.

While recognising a heightened level of market uncertainty, Kerry has maintained its full year constant currency earnings per share guidance growth of 7-11%. Foreign currency translation is expected to be a headwind of 3-4% on earnings per share in 2025. As of the end of March, Kerry had repurchased €185m of ordinary shares from its current €300m programme. It now intends to initiate a further buyback of up to €300m post the completion of the existing programme.